The Chance of a Lifetime
by Duchess131
Summary: When Aislinn Riley arrives at Canterwood for her freshman year, she's pretty sure she knows what to expect. The classes will be hard, her riding skills will be challenged more than ever, and she'll encounter a good amount of drama. But it turns out that there's more than one surprise that will be thrown into the mix.


I tore my eyes away from the beautiful green pastures flying by outside the car window, and hit the pause button on my purple iPod. I hated to cut off my latest musical obsession - the _Next to Norma_l soundtrack - in the middle of my favorite song, but considering Dad was turning the car through the wrought iron gates and onto the pristine grounds of Canterwood Crest Academy, I didn't really have a choice. As we turned into a small parking lot off the main driveway, I fiddled with the hem of my black and gray striped shirt. I still wasn't sure how I felt about leaving home, my dad, and my best friend Taylor for the whole school year.

"Are you planning to get out of the car at all, or am I going to have to go to school in your place?" Dad's voice broke into my thoughts. He grinned, holding open the door to the passenger seat.

I could feel my face turning red as I slid out of the car into the warm, late summer air. It wasn't like me to get lost in my daydreams like that. Getting accepted to Canterwood was really messing with me. While Dad was opening the small one-horse trailer hitched to the back of the car, I stood in the middle of the parking lot and took in Canterwood's campus for the first time since I had arrived. Everything - from the buildings, to the lawns and the stable area - looked overwhelmingly humongous compared to my small, quiet hometown in New Hampshire. I forced myself to take deep breaths and remember that I had a map folded up in my purse, and that I could always ask other students for directions if I got lost.

"Ash, do you think you could-"

"Coming," I said, quickly walking over to the trailer, where Dad stood holding my horse, who was evidently giving him some trouble.

"Are you being a butthead again?" I asked, running my hand under Lia's black mane. The dapple gray mare butted her head into my shoulder as if to say 'Aren't I always?" I giggled, and started to lead her in the direction of the stable. Dad, carrying some of my tack, walked on my other side, shooting nervous glances at Lia, who was now walking calmly beside me. I was pretty sure she only acted up with Dad because she knew she could get away with it due to Dad's complete lack of horse experience. I hated to admit it, because I loved Dad more than anything, but sometimes I got a little jealous of Taylor, whose mom was my riding instructor at home.

We walked up the long drive towards the stable in complete silence, punctured only by the clomping of Lia's hooves on the driveway. I sighed. I definitely knew what this was about. While he had always been supportive of my riding, Dad had made very little effort to hide that he was not so thrilled about the idea of me going to boarding school. I didn't blame him; I had pretty much spent my whole summer doing everything I could to avoid thinking about that particular aspect of Canterwood. Still, I had to say something to break the current awkwardness between us.

"So…the grass is really pretty," I said, and immediately wanted to smack myself in the face. Who wanted to talk about grass!? To my surprise, Dad laughed.

"Yes, it is. Whoever mows it does a very good job; there's not one grassy mohawk in sight."

I rolled my eyes. "You're never going to let me live that one down, are you? I said, thinking back to early summer, when Dad had let me try cutting our grass for the first time ever, and I had missed…well, I had missed a lot of spots.

"Never," he said, and we both laughed. However, the laughter died in my throat as we approached the stable.

The stable had looked huge even from the parking lot, but that hadn't prepared me for the experience of actually walking into it. Dozens of stalls stretched on for what looked like forever on either side of the aisle, which had to be at least twice as wide as the one back home. I grasped Lia's black lead rope tighter and led her forward into the stable, trying to tear my eyes away from all of the gorgeous horses poking their heads over stall doors long enough to look for Lia's stall.

About halfway down the stable aisle, I spotted her name on a golden nameplate, and led her into the large stall. I slipped her navy halter off and swung it over my shoulder.

"How do you like your new home?" I asked, keeping my voice low in an attempt to not gain a reputation as 'that crazy girl who talks to her horse'. "Hopefully you're not as scared as I am, since I'll need you as my confidence booster. I mean, if this is the stables, I don't even want to know what the rest of the school looks like." At the sound of my voice, Lia turned her head around to face me, her mouth full of hay. I reached out to pet her under her forelock - her favorite spot - and was rewarded by Lia turning back and snatching another mouthful from her haynet.

"I see how it is. You like food better than me." I let myself out of her stall, hanging her halter and lead rope on a hook next to the door. Even though Lia had only been mine for a few months, I was well aware that in her book, food beat out all other concerns - including listening to me ramble on about random goings-on in my life. I went over to Dad, who was standing outside the door to what I assumed was the tack room, since his arms were now empty of Lia's stuff.

"Ready to head over to your dorm?" he asked as we walked out of the stable.

"I guess," I said, not wanting to admit that I was a little nervous about meeting my roommate in person. Courtney and I had been emailing back and forth the past couple of weeks, but it had mostly been about coordinating stuff for our room. I still had no idea what she was going to be like.

"Well, I think your new dorm will be good for you," Dad said.

"And why is that?"

"Because whenever something bad happens, all you have to do to feel better is to remind yourself that at least your last name isn't Butkis."

I giggled. He had a point there. Winchester A. Butkis, whoever he was, had to have had a pretty interesting life with that name. I wondered what he had to do to get Canterwood to name a residence hall after him. Those thoughts entertained me until Dad pulled the car up in front of the four story brick building. We each took as many bags as we could handle from the trunk of the car, and headed up the steps into Winchester, where we met a girl with short brown hair who turned out to be the dorm monitor, Livvie. She went through a quick overview of some of the basic rules before handing me a key and directing me to my room. It was on the first floor, just like my room at home, which was a good start.

Dad and I made our way slowly down a bright yellow hallway until we reached room 107. Taking a deep breath, I put the key into the lock and opened the door. The room had soft cream walls, two windows, and a beautiful hardwood floor. Both of the beds were empty, so I assumed Courtney hadn't arrived yet.

"Wow," Dad said from behind me, "I wish my dorm room in college had been this big!"

With difficulty, I refrained from rolling my eyes as I stacked all of my bags in a heap at the foot of the bed on the left of the room. No one would ever get me to admit it out loud, but I was going to miss my dad's bizarre sense of humor in my everyday life. I walked over and enveloped him in a huge hug.

"I love you," I whispered into his shirt.

"I love you too," he said. "Just remember, if anyone gives you any trouble, just say the word, and I'll come down here to scare them off."

"I'll be sure to do that," I said, trying to control the shaking in my voice. This was going to be harder than I thought it would be.

"Call me tonight," he said. I nodded, and we exchanged one last hug before Dad headed out the door to make the four hour drive back home. I sat down on what was soon to be my bed, almost unable to believe that this moment was really here. I was actually sitting in my new dorm room at Canterwood Crest Academy, my dream school. A combined feeling of terror and excitement washed over me. Whether I was ready or not, this was the moment I'd been waiting for all summer long.


End file.
